Poll: 73 Percent of Idahoans Want State Control Over Federal Lands

According to a poll from Idaho Politics Weekly, a majority of Idahoans want federal lands handed over to the state. The poll, conducted on 603 Idaho residents April 8-19, showed 73 percent of them would like to see management of federal lands given to the state of Idaho. It also showed 23 percent of Idahoans would like federal lands to remain in the hands of its current managers and 5 percent don't know. The poll has a 3.99 percent margin of error. Federal lands constitute the bulk of many Western states. In Idaho, they make up approximately 64 percent of the Gem State's acreage and for years there has been a push in several state legislatures to find ways of placing control over those lands in the hands of states. In 2013, House Concurrent Resolution 21 cropped up in the Idaho Legislature, which would have created a committee to study and report on a process for "acquir[ing] title to and control of public lands controlled by the federal government in the State of Idaho." The debate over who should own public lands has made headlines—and in some cases sparked violence—with increasing regularity this year.  The Idaho Politics Weekly poll revealed partisan divides over support of state land takeovers, with 87 percent of Republicans, 65 percent of independents and 47 percent of Democrats approving of state takeovers...more